Ontogenesis of the sulfhydryl oxidase QSOX expression in rat brain

The spatiotemporal pattern of distribution of the sulfhydryl oxidase QSOX throughout ontogeny was mapped in rat brain using immunohistochemistry. The enzyme was detected on embryonic day (E) 12 in the dawning mantle layer, but the adult-like pattern was acquired postnatally around day 30 (P30). Throughout ontogenesis, rQSOX was detected in immature and mature neurons, but not in glial cells. The rQSOX developmental pattern can be divided into four periods: on E12 the enzyme was detected in the brainstem, more precisely in motoneurons; later (E16), rQSOX-positive cells were also observed in the forebrain, in the caudoputamen, and the subventricular zone. During late embryogenesis (E18-20), the amount of rQSOX cells considerably increased throughout the brain; they initially appeared in the hippocampus, then in the isocortex. From birth onwards, complex modifications of the rQSOX distribution occurred leading to the adult pattern by P30. Although rQSOX exhibits an overall increasing spatiotemporal pattern of distribution, different expression strategies were distinguished depending on the cell type or brain area. By comparing the rQSOX ontogeny with data on neurogenesis and brain histogenesis, we hypothesize that the enzyme could play a role in guiding migrating cells, their settling, and neuronal maturation, e.g., during outgrowth and synaptogenesis.